


how to pick up girls

by WattStalf



Category: Fire Emblem Echoes: Mou Hitori no Eiyuu Ou | Fire Emblem Echoes: Shadows of Valentia, Fire Emblem Series
Genre: Awkward Flirting, Bad Advice, F/M, Kink Meme, Sibling Bonding
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-03
Updated: 2018-07-03
Packaged: 2019-06-01 14:37:27
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,588
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15145292
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WattStalf/pseuds/WattStalf
Summary: Luthier could certainly use the help, but is Delthea really the best source of advice?





	how to pick up girls

**Author's Note:**

> Another one for the kink meme

“Um…” Already, Luthier wants to kick himself. He isn’t used to starting conversation with strangers, and isn’t even sure what pushed him to do so this time, but still, he had hoped for a stronger start than that, especially considering how long he rehearsed it in his head.

“Yes?” the young woman asks, giving a small, somewhat confused smile.

“I just...wanted to say hello?” He wishes that had come out sounding less like a question, and he internally curses himself.

“Hello?”

“Yes, ah, it’s nice to meet you, I just couldn’t help but...uh...my name is Luthier.” Why is this so damn  _ hard _ ? More importantly, why did he do this in the first place? He doesn’t exactly make a habit of chatting up women, or men, or anyone, and still, he managed to convince himself that he should talk to  _ this _ woman, that it was really okay for him to approach her and start a conversation.

She seems more confused now, perhaps even a little put off, and he wishes for an escape now. More than that, he wishes for a way to turn back time, but surely that isn’t possible. The villager isn’t speaking at all, and he doesn’t know what else to say, and he really does wish the ground would swallow him up now.

Salvation- if he can call it that- comes in the form of his younger sister. “Please ignore my socially clueless brother!” she declares as she approaches, grabbing him by his arm. “If you don’t mind, we’ll just be going now!” And, when she tugs at him, he does not resist, following her along and somewhat grateful for the escape, even if she was more than a little rude in helping him out.

Once she’s gotten him far enough away, he is prepared to thank her before lecturing her in how to behave around strangers, but she is speaking before he has the chance. “What is  _ wrong  _ with you?!” she shrieks. “Just what do you think you’re doing?”

“I don’t-”

“Don’t play dumb with me, Lu. You  _ like _ her, don’t you?”

“L-like her?! I don’t even know her, so I don’t see how-” He knows that he’s blushing, but that doesn’t mean anything, does it?

“You were trying to flirt with her, I’m not stupid. Whether you know her or not, you at least think she’s pretty, right?” Delthea gives him a look, that, despite her height, intimidates him just enough to get him to admit the truth.

“She...she is rather beautiful, I suppose,” he mumbles, his blush darkening.

“Well, if you’re going to flirt, that is  _ not _ how you do it. You can’t just walk up and introduce yourself out of nowhere!”

“But why not?” If walking up to someone and talking to them isn’t the right way to...well, walk up to someone and talk to them, then he doesn’t know what is.

“Because it’s super awkward and kind of creepy?” Delthea shakes her head. “Honestly, I don’t know what I’m going to do with you.”

He can’t recall many times that he’s been more humiliated than right now, and he mumbles, “So, why do you care?”

“Because we’re family, Lu,” she says, and her face softens for only a second before she grins. “Besides, if I can get you a girlfriend then maybe I can get you out of my hair for a little bit!”

Luthier scowls and says, “How very generous of you.”

“Come on, don’t you at least want to try? You were definitely into her, and now you have a chance to redeem yourself so she doesn’t think you’re a total weirdo!”

Though Delthea’s words are harsh and her motives are questionable, Luthier knows, deep down, that she means well. And, in a way, it’s sort of touching that she cares enough to try to help him, even if it is partially for her own benefit. Luthier decides it can’t hurt to humor her (and, as much as he doesn’t want to admit it, he is rather interested in the villager, and in being able to talk to girls in general).

“Really, it’s about time we had this talk,” she says, once they get started. “You’re such a late bloomer, you know?”

“Need I remind you that I’m the older brother, and you have absolutely no experience in the relationship department?”

“Are you really going to talk back to your gracious teacher?” she snaps. “No experience is still more than you have, because that pathetic display earlier counts as  _ negative _ experience!”

She goes on about how she doesn’t need experience, anyway, because she knows what counts: the secrets of a woman’s heart. At that point, Luthier is utterly lost, but he continues listening to humor her, and she rattles on about what’s important what women really like in a man. He can’t help but notice most of the traits she lists- strong, dashing, wealthy- don’t apply to him at all, but still, he holds his tongue.

“You may not be the perfect catch, but there’s someone for everyone, right? And if you play your cards right, I think even you could find true love,” she continues, seeming completely unaware of how cruel the things she says are. Fortunately, Luthier is more than used to it by now.

“You still haven’t said anything about how I actually talk to her,” he interjects.

“Yeah, well, that part’s coming! I was just going over the basics, and what kind of man you need to be to catch her attention!” she says, rolling her eyes. “If you’re going to start a conversation with a girl, you’ve got to say something witty but also flattering! Something that will really catch her attention and let her know that you’re not just some guy. You’re a guy worth getting to know!”

“And then?”

“And then you just keep being interesting. Compliment her and listen to her, ask her questions and make your conversation around that. If she asks you about yourself, you might have to exaggerate to make yourself seem cooler,” she explains. “I can’t script out everything, so you’re going to have to improvise most of this.”

She goes over different lines he can use to start a conversation, all of which sound completely ridiculous to him, but Delthea insists that she knows better than he could ever hope to, and, remembering the perplexed look on the villager’s face, he starts to think she might be right. He was certainly helpless trying to handle things on his own.

“Now, do you think you’re ready to try talking to her?”

“A-already?” He doesn’t feel like he’s learned enough to handle this on his own.

“Well, yeah! She’s not gonna be around forever, you might have already missed your chance! You need to get out there before it’s too late and you have to find another one!” she insists. “I know it seems rushed, but I did all I could. The rest is up to you!”

During their impromptu lesson, the woman did not go far, and it isn’t hard for Luthier to find her again. He steels himself before he approaches her for the second time, and when he reaches her, she looks at him with one brow raised, as if curious about what he wants this time.

“Hello, again,” he manages to say in a somewhat steady tone of voice. “I-I apologize for earlier.”

“No need to apologize...Luthier, right?”

“Yes, that’s right,” he says, pleased that she remembers. “B-but, I do want to apologize, because I wasn’t able to say what I meant to. Which is, uh, I wanted to ask...are you a magical text? Because I find that I can’t take my eyes off of you.”

That wasn’t exactly one of Delthea’s lines; he modified it to fit his own hobbies more, but he hopes that it does the trick. But when the villager begins laughing, dread washes over him. Of course, he never should have trusted his little sister! He should have known she would just do something to get him made fun of!

“I’m sorry,” the villager says as she tries to calm her laughter. “I’m not trying to be mean, I just...I’ve never had anyone actually talk to me like that before. I thought you might be joking.”

“I wasn’t, I just-”

“Your sister told you to say that, right?”

“I...yes,” he says, looking down.

“Well, I’m sure her heart was in the right place,” she replies. “I also didn’t mean to give you the cold shoulder earlier, I’m just not used to being approached like that, and I wasn’t sure what you wanted at first. Actually, I’m still not completely sure, but I think I have a better idea.”

“I’d like to get to know you better,” Luthier says sincerely, meeting her eye again.

“I’ve got some free time right now,” she says with a smile, and his heart skips a beat. “But, for future reference, you don’t have to use any lines anymore, alright?”

“Yes, of course. I’m...not very good at coming up with them anyway.”

“Now, let’s see...you want to get to know me, right? You can ask anything you want, within reason.”

“Let’s start with your name then.”

It hasn’t gone perfectly, and it is likely not going the way Delthea planned either, and her lessons did not help in the way she thought they would, but things are still going well. In fact, Luthier couldn’t be happier with the way things are going now.


End file.
